Candidates About

Paul Nicholsen

summary

Full-stack Python/Django programmer with concentration on front-end development.  Available for full-time work on meaningful projects, especially those that provide development in interesting or new technologies and languages. 

technical proficiencies

Python, Django, Javascript/jQuery, Angular, HTML/CSS/SCSS, Bootstrap, Git/Github, Heroku, Flask, MacOS, Linux, Swift, MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQLite

programming experience

Library of Congress / Artemis Industries January 2017-present

•   Maintained www.congress.gov, including bug fixes and new features, including rebuilding templates to be responsive across devices.

•   Built features of ETL designed to process incoming bills and other data from Congress both for internal use and for public-facing website.

•   Member of Admin Tools team with focus on building tools to support various departments at the Library of Congress by automating some of their job functions.

Atlantic Media, web developer october 2014-December 2016

•   Lead front-end developer on new ‘Notes’ section of The Atlantic, seen at www.theatlantic.com/notes.

•   Part of the redesign team to convert PHP site into Python/Django, including making the site’s design responsive to all device viewports.  Won Digiday’s  2015 “Best Publishing Site Design”.

•   Managed AB Testing using both internal framework and Optimizely to make data-driven improvements to increase  traffic and page views.

•   Piloted pair programming initiative to increase communication within team, overall code quality, and development of junior team members.

Dow Jones, web developer, January 2013-october 2014

•   Lead developer on a team of three building a Django-based CMDB for internal-use, including building a fully-functional test suite, REST API, and documentation.

•   Handle support requests regarding our ticketing system, Jira, both in assisting employees with its use and in customizing it to meet the needs of individual teams

•   Provide on-call support for users of company’s internal tools to manage emergencies and outages

•   Train new developers on internal systems and company policies on a bi-monthly basis

Personal projects

KNOW YOUR MEMBERS

iPhone app (Swift) designed to help members of the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington play a guessing game matching members’ names to pictures. (https://github.com/paulnicholsen27/guess_who)

WWW.WITHINREACHGROUP.COM

Personal website powered by Django and deployed with Heroku built for client’s psychotherapy practice. (https://github.com/paulnicholsen27/within_reach)

EDUCATION

hacker school, new york, Oct-Dec 2012.

3-month intensive program to improve coding. Specialized in Python with some exposure to other languages.  Major projects included a command-line bit-torrent client, tic-tac-toe AI, and a cryptogram code-breaker.

Pace University, New York - M.S.T, Secondary Math Education; May 2006

Rutgers College of Rutgers University, New Jersey - B.a. English/math; may 2002

Graduated with Honors, Phi Beta Kappa, Cap and Skull Honor Society

ADDITIONAL Experience

VICE PRESIDENT OF COMMUNICATION, GAY MEN’S CHORUS OF WASHINGTON, 2016-PRESENT

Provide technical recommendations and build tools to facilitate the management of the three hundred members of the Gay Men’s Chorus, including ongoing support and training on the chorus software “Chorus Connection”, automating downloads of music files, and scraping member data from websites for various internal uses.

Adjunct professor, bronx community college, ny, ny — 2009-2012

Created curriculum and ran semester-long courses designed to teach introductory college writing and math skills. Ran tutoring center for students requiring extra assistance in their coursework.

math Teacher, computer teacher, MS 104, NY, NY — 2004-2008

Taught four classes each year of thirty middle school students of extremely diverse personal backgrounds and ability levels.  Implemented creative and innovative classroom management techniques focusing on humor and positivity.